Shortly after 8 a.m. on Sunday, May 18, 2014, 22-year-old Sergio O. Partida and 21-year-old Andrew S. Barrios, both of Ontario, were found dead near a 2002 Acura that had plunged more than 700 feet off a mountain road in the Angeles National Forest near Mt. Baldy, reported the Los Angeles Times. Authorities suspect that the driver lost control of the vehicle while negotiating a left curve, causing the car to travel through a dirt turnout and down an embankment. It rolled multiple times, and, although Partida and Barrios were wearing seat belts, they were both thrown from the vehicle. Authorities have not determined when the crash occurred and are investigating.

After six consecutive years of decline, motor vehicle collision deaths increased 3.3 percent in the United States in 2012, from 32,479 in 2011 to 33,561, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Fatalities in rural accidents increased 2.3 percent, while those in urban accidents increased 4.9 percent. Fatal roadway departure crashes increased 3.4 percent. Across California, traffic fatalities increased 1.5 percent, from 2,816 in 2011 to 2,857 in 2012.

Under California law, when a family loses a loved one to a traffic collision, they may hold the party responsible for the accident liable for their loss. To learn more about the wrongful death claims process, please call 888-752-7474 or contact us online.

All of us at Allen, Flatt, Ballidis, and Leslie would like to offer our condolences to the families of Sergio O. Partida and Andrew S. Barrios.